Providing Culturally Sensitive Care For Somali Women Essay

“Health is influenced by culture and beliefs” (NRS-429V, 2011, p. 1). In order for the nurse to properly care for the patient, she must know and understand the patient’s culture. “Cultural care is a comprehensive model that includes the assessment of a client’s cultural needs, beliefs, and health care practices” (NRS-429V, 2011, p. 1). It is not enough to just know where the patient lives or where he came from. The nurse must embrace the concept of cultural competence and cultural awareness. This requires not only the awareness of the cultural beliefs and values of their patients, but also

Health in all cultures is an important aspect of life. A person’s cultural background, religion and/or beliefs, greatly influences a person’s health and their response to medical care (Spector, 2004). These diverse cultures guide decisions made in daily life; what food eaten, living arrangements made, medications taken and medical advice listened to. A nurse must be knowledgeable and respectful of these diverse cultures and understand their importance when providing care. This understanding helps to build a strong nurse/patient relationship, increasing patient compliance, which ensures positive outcomes are met. Patients who are satisfied

Cultural competence in nursing is imperative for effective patient care. A nurse must know his or her own values and beliefs as well as knowing about a patient cultural practices in relation to healthcare. Cultural competence is defined by some as: “the learned, shared and transmitted values, beliefs, norms and lifeways of a particular group that guides their thinking, decisions and actions.” Also it is noted that an important change to this definition is “the recognition of the dynamic,

Cultural competence can be defined as using the ability of one’s awareness, attitude, knowledge and skill to effectively interact with a patient’s many cultural differences. Madeline Leininger, a pioneer on transcultural nursing describes it this way; “a formal area of study and practice focused on comparative human-care differences and similarities of the beliefs, values and patterned lifeways of cultures to provide culturally congruent, meaningful, and beneficial health care to people” (Barker, 2009, p. 498). The importance of cultural diversity in healthcare allows for the delivery of appropriate cultural autonomy. Showing respect for others will lead to trust between nurse and

In order to deliver nursing care to different cultures, nurses are expected to understand and provide culturally competent health care to diverse individuals. Culturally competent care is tailored to the specific needs of each client, while incorporating the individual’s beliefs and values (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2006, p. 90). By being culturally competent, nurses are able to help improve health outcomes by using cultural knowledge and specific skills in selecting interventions that are specific to each client (Stanhope & Lancaster). Therefore, nurses “should perform a cultural assessment on every client with whom they interact with” (Stanhope &

The cultural health beliefs are specific for the Arabs with the main concern of the family. The family’s role is to indulge the sick person and take responsibilities off his or her shoulders (Salimbene et al., 2000 pg. 135). According to Meleis (2005 pg. 52), the family is central in both society and culture. When a woman is pregnant, the woman must be satisfied because “it is believed that the unborn child may develop a birthmark in the shape of the unsatisfied craving” (Salimbene et al., 2000). In the Arab culture, pain is harmful and should be controlled because the family does not want to see the patient

To be a successful culturally competent nurse, nurses should assume attitudes to promote transcultural care. Nurses need to be aware of their patient’s cultural differences - taking time to understand and value patient’s cultural needs and perspectives. Nurses should show respect and concern for patients. Nurses should also be empathic with their patients.

According to the United States Census Bureau (2013), there were a total of 114.2 million Arab households residing in the U.S. between 2006 and 2010. Out of those households, one in three was Lebanese (Asi & Beaulieu, 2013). Chances are nurses in the United States are going to facilitate people of Middle Eastern descent, particularly those from Lebanon. Lebanese Muslims are predominately of the Sunni or Shia sects (The Iran Primer, 2014). To better understand how to care for a Sunni or Shia Muslim as a nursing professional, this paper will examine the cultural beliefs of such a patient that is undergoing a radical mastectomy for Breast Cancer. The discourse of this paper will focus on three areas: the psychological effect of being subjected

Cultural diversity in the medical field is, at times, greatly hindered because of religious beliefs, language barriers, and the hierarchies of diverse cultures and these have the propensity to affect the continuity of care for the patients. “Every person has different aspects that constitute their identities, according to how they see themselves….This means that seeing an individual in terms of

In today’s society, it is very important for the healthcare professional to be educated about the culture of their patients. It can be seen that the number of patients who are Muslim are increasing throughout the healthcare system. It is challenging for healthcare workers to care for the needs of Muslim patients when they don’t understand their cultural beliefs. Muslims don’t necessarily have the same health beliefs, outcomes, or priorities that their providers have, therefore making it more difficult to come to a final healthcare decision (Al-Oraibi, 2009.) “This intercultural gap in understanding between clients and providers may result in poor care services and low levels of satisfaction” (Al-Oraibi, 2009.) Muslims are

This report will be investigating the various sociological perspectives on health as well as the models and definitions of health and ill health. These topics will assist in the understanding of how different people and different cultures react to ill health.

During the semester, I was successful at completing the objective, of collaborating with peers, other professionals and families plan and implement culturally competent nursing care to childbearing families. I improved my skill of communicating with patients whose culture was different than mine; I did this by picking patients with a unique culture. For example, I would pick to work with a patient that didn’t speak the same language as me. This helped me with communicating with different groups and cultures. For example, if a mother or their family member spoke a different language than me, I wouldn’t not joke around with them as they have a different culture, and my joke may be translated differently or negatively. Unfortunately, that barrier

This study focuses on the culture of Arab Muslim living in the United States. Arab Muslim population is one of the dramatically increasing minorities in the United States. In addition to other factors, religion and cultural background influence individuals' beliefs, behaviors, and attitudes toward health and illness. However, in Muslim community health care is viewed uniquely and treated same way across the board (Najeh M Ahmad, 2004).

After completing the “cultural competence checklist: personal reflection designed by T.D. Goode” for the first time, I was not surprised by my results. The results were a reflection of my personal understanding how culture impacts holistic care and my continuous need to improve my care. I have strived to become non-judgmental. I work to not let my personal beliefs and values influence my nursing care on decisions. When I practice this philosophy it provides better patient outcomes and promotes an improved understanding of cultural differences. This also enhances a safe and caring environment. “It is important for health care providers to recognize that care must be individualized and considerate of the cultural. Racial, and ethnic identity of the patients and their families” (Broome, 2006, p. 486) .There is much diversity in the beliefs and practices of the Indian culture and we should grant these individuals complete freedom to practice their personal cultural variations and the religion they choose.

The United States population has been described as a “melting pot” and continues to increase in diversity. A patient’s culture has a significant influence on how their health care should be provided. It is vital for nurses as health care providers to be culturally competent and knowledgeable of the patient’s culture to deliver appropriate, holistic care (Potter & Perry, 2011). This paper will discuss the Arab culture and focus mainly on what to do and not to do as a nurse rendering care to an Arab patient.